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IRAN has executed a political prisoner accused of spying for Israel, despite his claims of being tortured into making a false confession.
Mohsen Langarneshin, 34, was hanged Wednesday at Ghezel Hesar prison near Tehran, the judiciary’s media centre confirmed.
The official IRNA news agency described him as a “senior spy” for Israel’s Mossad, claiming he helped in the 2022 assassination of Revolutionary Guard Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei.
Langarneshin had repeatedly denied the charges, insisting he was forced into confessing under duress.
“In the interrogations, they put me under so much pressure,” he said in a voice message from prison.
“They said they would arrest every member of my family and keep them until I no longer recognise them.”
He also revealed he was threatened with “severe torture unless he confessed” and later admitted – under pressure – to buying a motorbike with a camera and transporting explosives, allegations he insisted were fabricated.
Arrested on July 3, 2023, by security forces in Tehran, Langarneshin was initially held in a Ministry of Intelligence safehouse.
He had been among those detained in the wake of the Mahsa Amini protests that rocked the country in 2022.
Tehran’s Revolutionary Court sentenced him to death on charges of “espionage for Israel,” citing a case built by the Ministry of Intelligence.
The judiciary accused him of “supporting the assassination of a person named Sayyad Khodaei, facilitating attacks on a Defense Ministry-linked industrial site in Isfahan, and handling logistics, equipment, safehouses, and money transfers for Mossad operatives.”
Langarneshin’s family had pleaded for clemency outside Evin Prison as the execution approached.
His supporters pointed to confirmed alibis and a lack of evidence linking him to the crimes.
“The 34-year-old network security expert is convicted of alleged involvement in IRGC assassinations despite NO evidence and confirmed alibis,” one source said.
Langarneshin was moved to solitary confinement earlier this week in a chilling sign of his looming execution, according to Iran International.
The Islamic Republic has consistently denied allegations of torture or wrongful imprisonment, despite decades of documented abuses against political detainees.
Rights groups have long condemned Iran’s use of torture and forced confessions.
Iran Human Rights stated in March: “The Islamic Republic has used televised confessions as a propaganda tool aimed at creating fear and justifying the heavy sentences handed down to its political opponents and activists since its inception in 1979.”
“Such confessions are extracted after physical and/or psychological torture, lengthy solitary confinement, threats or promises of reduction in the gravity of sentences and threats against family members,” the group added.
Iran: the world’s second top executioner in 2024
IRAN executed at least 972 people in 2024, solidifying its position as the second most prolific executioner on the planet after China, according to Amnesty international.
The staggering figure marks a sharp from the 853 executions recorded in 2023, with Iran responsible for the lion’s share of a deadly global spike.
The Islamic Republic topped the Middle East rankings, outpacing Saudi Arabia and Iraq – together accounting for 91% of all recorded executions worldwide.
Executions in Iran were often accompanied by barbaric punishments, including public floggings, limp amputations, and even eye-gouging.
The spike comes amid growing fears the death penalty is being wielded as a tool to crush dissent.
Protesters linked to the Mahsa Amini uprising have been sentenced to death, raising alarm among rights groups.
“Those who dare challenge authorities have faced the most cruel of punishments, particularly in Iran and Saudi Arabia, with the death penalty used to silence those brave enough to speak out,” said Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnes Callamard.
Only China, dubbed the “world’s leading executioner,” is believed to have carried out more killings, though exact figures remain a state secret.
Other high-ranking countries include Saudi Arabia — where executions doubled to at least 345 — and Iraq, which quadrupled its use of the death penalty with 63 recorded executions.
